Obituaries - April 30

Hood River News

Thursday, August 4, 2005

Lois Willis

Lois Willis, 90, of Yakima, Wash., passed on peacefully Friday, April 22, 2005, at Serenity West Adult Living Care Home.

She was born in Tahoka, Texas, on Oct. 24, 1914. On January 31, 1931, she was married to Robert Lee Willis in Roswell, N.M. They lived in Roswell until 1942 at which time the family moved to Hood River, Ore. In December 1947 they moved to Yakima, where they operated a fruit ranch for two years.

Lois was an avid gardener and a skilled seamstress; at one time running her own drapery-making shop. She loved the outdoors and always enjoyed taking grandchildren camping and fishing. She was very active in her lodge work and served as Worthy High Priestess in both the Eastern Star and the White Shrine Lodges.

Also surviving are granddaughters Donna Morgan and MariJo Grubenhoff (Don) of Yakima, Pamela Naylor (John) of Portland, Ore., and a very special “daughter she never had,” Shirley Lyons of Yakima; and numerous great- and great-great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Bob; a son, Bob, of Hood River; a daughter-in-law, Sharon Willis, of Yakima; her mother, father and five brothers and sisters.

There will be no services in Yakima, but she will be interred during a graveside service at the Pine Grove Cemetery in Hood River at a later time to be announced, at which time flowers could be sent to the cemetery if desired. Keith and Keith Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Laca Belle Gordon

Graveside services will be held on Monday, May 2, at 1 p.m. at Forest Lawn Cemetery for Laca Belle Gordon, a longtime Hood River, Ore., resident, who passed away on April 27, 2005, in Gladstone, Ore.

Laca was born on March 19, 1924, in Hood River, the daughter of Myrlen Roy and Lula A. (Pillen) Bader. She grew up and received her education in Hood River and Parkdale, Ore. She graduated from Hood River High School and later married Howard Gordon on Nov. 6, 1955, in Boring, Ore. They lived in Boring from 1955 until 1964 when they moved to Gladstone.

Laca was a homemaker and a longtime member of the Boring Methodist Church, and a very active member of the Womens Bowling League in Oregon City. She enjoyed family activities, bowling and playing cards.

Survivors include her son, Steven Gordon of Illinois; daughters Marsha Gordon, of Gladstone, and Luana Findley and her husband Larry, also of Gladstone; daughter-in-law Kathy Gordon, of Oregon City; brother Loren Bader, of Washington; three grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Howard, in 2003; a son, Mitchel, in 1987; and a daughter, Patricia, in 2003.

The family suggests remembrances to Providence Hospice in her memory. Bateman Carroll Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements, (503) 665-2128.

Ida Reed

Longtime Hood River resident Ida May Reed passed away at her home in Boardman, Ore., Tuesday, April 26, 2005, surrounded by her loving family and caregiver/ granddaughter, Fay. Ida was 90 years of age.

A celebration of life service will be held Saturday, April 30, at 4 p.m. at Anderson’s Tribute Center. A visitation was held Friday, April 29 at Anderson’s Tribute Center. Interment will be at Woodlawn Cemetery in Poplar Bluff, Mo.

Ida was one of 14 children. She was born to George and Lottie Allison in Chaonia, Mo., on March 27, 1915. She was raised and educated in Missouri where she completed her nursing degree. In 1955 the family moved west to White Salmon, Wash.

At the age of 16, Ida married her sweetheart Robert who stole her heart. While living in White Salmon, Ida worked in a care facility that eventually she and Robert bought and they ran Reed’s Rest Home for over 25 years.

Ida was a homemaker and her greatest love was being around her family and also cooking large family meals. She loved to sew, play cards, raise a garden and flowers, cook, can, and do things for others.

Ida was a longtime member of the Nazarene Church and very involved in the creation of the Senior Center in Boardman.

Mrs. Reed is survived by her son, Daniel Reed, and his wife, Julie, of Portland, Ore.; daughters Laura Jeffries and her husband, Willard, of Hood River, Ore.; and Eva Ray and her husband, George, of Missouri.

Myrtle Mary Carter, a former Hood River, Ore., resident, died April 26, 2005 at residence in The Dalles, Ore. She was 90 years of age.

Services were on Friday, April 29 at Anderson’s Tribute Center. Myrtle was born March 5, 1915, in Yate Center, Kansas, to John and Mary (Town) Heckard.

She was raised and educated in Waldron, Ark., and had resided in Arkansas and California before moving to Hood River in 1964. She has resided in The Dalles, the past 26 years. She enjoyed quilting and flowers. Her daughter, Mary O’Donnell and her son, Albert Jaco, preceded her in death.

Survivors include her sons, Sam Jaco of Santa Rosa, California; John Jaco of Lakeport, Calif.; Richard Jaco of Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Dale Jaco of Goldendale, Wash.; and daughters Mable Crauch and Betty Casey of The Dalles, and Linda Wilson of Santa Rosa, Calif.. Numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and nieces and nephews also survive.

Patsy L. “Pat” Pulliam, 80, formerly of the Gaston community, late of Forest Grove, died Saturday, April 23, 2005, at her home. A memorial service was held on April 27 in the Fuiten, Rose & Hoyt Funeral Home in Forest Grove. Interment was at the Willamette National Cemetery in Portland.

Patsy Lou “Pat” Pulliam was born Nov. 16, 1924, in Lincoln, Neb., the daughter and only child of Joseph Ryder (J.R.) and Mary Marguerite (Chamberlain) Nelson. She was raised and received her early education in Nebraska. The Nelson family relocated to Washington state, where Pat graduated from Yakima High School. She attended Northwest Community College for two years.

Pat married LeRoy Alden Pulliam on June 17, 1945, in Yakima, Wash. They had met at the Yakima First Christian Church during their high school years where LeRoy first glimpsed Pat’s “beautiful brown eyes” and determined she was the girl he would marry. After their wedding, LeRoy returned to active duty in the Navy and Pat traveled by train to Martha’s Vineyard Island where they honeymooned and lived until LeRoy was discharged from the Navy. Pat loved her time on Martha’s Vineyard and retained fond memories of this period of their life together. Pat and LeRoy celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary this past June.

The young couple lived in Yakima and Walla Walla, Wash., then moved to Corvallis, Ore., where LeRoy completed his degree in vocational agriculture and Pat worked for the Department of Social Services. Over the ensuing years, they made their home in the Oregon communities of Nyssa, Silverton, Madras, Culver, Metolius and Parkdale. They also made frequent trips to Alaska, where they had a cabin near Fairbanks. In 1997 they sold their Parkdale place, with its view of Mount Hood, and moved to the Gaston community. They moved to their present home at the Jennings-McCall Residential Community in 2004.

Pat worked as a legal secretary, a medical transcriptionist and as a secretary for the U.S. Forest Service until her retirement. She was a member of the Culver Christian Church and had in the past been an active member of the church community and choir.

Pat had a beautiful voice and a gift for music, which was a great passion of hers. Flowers were another great love. She nurtured her flowers — especially her roses and glads — and her flower beds flourished. Pat enjoyed reading and books. She had done volunteer work at the library. Her numerous grandchildren provided her great pleasure with their stories and their company. More recently she felt blessed with her three beautiful great-grandchildren.

Pat is survived by her husband, LeRoy; a son and daughter-in-law, Dr. Joseph P. and Cheryl Pulliam of Beaverton, Ore.; a daughter and son-in-law, Sharon L. and Jerry Story of Wasilla, Alaska; grandchildren Erika, Rurik, Chad, Mackenzie and Jessica; great-grandchildren Aubrey, Ethan and Genna; and numerous nieces and nephews. Fuiten, Rose & Hoyt Funeral Home in Forest Grove handled arrangements.

Kenneth ‘Mickey’ Long

Funeral services for Kenneth Michael “Mickey” Long, 44, of Granbury, Texas, were held at Martin’s Funeral Home Chapel, Saturday, April 23, 2005.

The native of Glendale, Calif., was born Aug. 3, 1960, the son of Kenneth and Catherine Barragan Long. Mickey grew up in The Dalles, Ore., attending Wahtonka school. He died Tuesday, April 19, 2005, in Granbury.

Survivors are his wife, Vonnie Long of Granbury; sons, Joshua Michael Long and Cory Wayne Long, both of Granbury; a daughter, Cassandra Marie Long of Granbury; a brother, Roger Long of The Dalles; a sister, Leilani Long of The Dalles; and five nieces, three nephews and extended family members.

Latest video:

Parkdale third graders sing "12 Disaster Days of Christmas"

Welcome to your sing-able Christmas gift list.
What follows is an emergency rendition of “12 Days of Christmas” – for outfitting your home or car in case of snow storm, earthquake, flood or other emergency.
Read it as a simple list, or sing it to the tune of “12 Days” – you know, as in “ … and a partridge in a pear tree…”
Not to make light of it, but the song is a familiar framework for a set of gift ideas that you could consider gathering together, even if the recipient already owns items such as a bunch of coats, tire chains and flashlights. Stores throughout the Gorge are stocked up on all these items. Buying all 12 days might be prohibitive, but here are three ideas for checking any of the dozen off your list (notations follow, 1-12.) The gift items needed to stay warm, dry and safe are also coded to suggest items in your abode (A) in your car (C) or both (B).
12 Gallons of Water (A)
11 Family meals (B)
10 Cans of propane (A)
9 Hygiene bags (B)
8 Packs of batteries (A)
7 Spare coats (B)
6 Bright red flares (C)
5 Cozy blankets (B)
4 Tire chains (C)
3 Flashlights (B)
2 cell phone chargers (B)
1 And a crush-proof first aid kit (B)
Price ranges? Here’s a few quotes for days Three, Two, Four and Nine:
n A family gift of flashlights (three will run $15-30, Hood River Supply, Tum-A-Lum)
n Cell phone chargers (two will run $30-60)
n Tire chains (basic set, $30, Les Schwab, returnable if unused for the winter)
n Family meals ($100 or so should cover the basics for three or four reasonably well-fed days)
n
The home kit should be kept in a handy place near an exit, and remember that water needs to be replenished every few months.
If you have a solid first aid kit already, switch out the gift idea with “and-a-sto-o-u-t- tub-for it-all …”
Otherwise, it’s a case of assembling your home or car kits and making sure all members of the family know what the resources are and how to use them (ie flares and propane).
Emergency situations are at worst life-threatening, at best deeply uncomfortable if you and your family are left without power for an extended period, or traveling and find yourself in a situation where you need to wait out a storm, lengthy traffic delay, or other crisis.
Notes on the 12 gift ideas:
12 – Gallons of water: that’s one per person in a four-member family to last for three days, the recommended minimum to be prepared for utility outages.
11 – Easy-open packaged goods, energy bars, dried food and nuts are good things to include for nutrition. Think of what your family of four needs for three days to stay fortified and hydrated (see number 12). Can-opener also recommended
10 – If you have a propane camping stove, keep extra fuel handy.
9 – Hygiene bags: put packaged moistened towelettes, toilet paper, and plastic ties in large garbage bags (for personal sanitation)
Resource list courtesy of Hood River County Emergency Management, Barbara Ayers, manager/ 541-386-1213.
The county also reminds residents to Get a Kit, Make A Plan to connect your family if separated, and Stay Informed. See www.co.hood-river.or.us to opt-in for citizen alerts. Enlarge